


Pride, Prejudice and Politics

by starsandfires



Category: Bridget Jones's Diary - All Media Types, Pride and Prejudice (2005), Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, this is a pride and prejudice au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-09
Updated: 2016-04-09
Packaged: 2018-06-01 04:20:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6500569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starsandfires/pseuds/starsandfires
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eliza Bradley has always hated the rich - specifically the rich who look down on people who need help. How will she fare when she's forced to work with William Darcy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pride, Prejudice and Politics

Eliza Bradley has just graduated university, a passion for politics and for helping those who couldn’t help themselves. She hadn’t fitted in with most undergrads in her year, her northern accent and her anger for injustice had alienated her from most crowds.

William Darcy was upper class without a doubt, he’d spent his younger years at Eton and received his degree at Cambridge with honours obviously. Then he had gone onto to do his masters at Oxford. Amongst his circle, he was charming and educated. His party had preferred men like him, they didn’t welcome those that spent their time surrounded by the lower classes.

Eliza hates William when she meets him, he’s been with his new Party a few months. He doesn’t hate it but he doesn’t like it either. Eliza hates him though; she feels his aristocracy burning off him. He enjoys the way he makes her feel; he smirks into his glass. She’s young, 24, she’ll learn to deal with him he thinks. He’s only eight years older than her but eight years can do a lot to a man, especially in politics.

“If he wasn’t such an entitled cock he’d be good looking,” Eliza states to her group of friends, today they’ve chosen a restaurant in soho to eat at and specifically, to drink.

“I’ve heard about him, he has lovely hair and the eyes,” Charlotte sighs as she sips her lemonade and vodka.

“He has got good hair an’ you can tell he works out,” Eliza says, she’s spent a few years down south now but now and again you can hear her accent slip through. “Alas,” she says dramatically.

“A cock. We know,” her friends all say, which cause them to guffaw in laughter as Eliza nearly spits out her vodka.

 

“I hate hiiiim,” Eliza moans, drunkenly as Charlotte lays her on the couch, Charlotte smiles and rolls her eyes.

“Okay go to sleep Eliza, you have to be up early.” Eliza makes an indistinct noise and Charlotte makes her way to bed, leaving her best friend on the couch – passed out.

Eliza doesn’t understand why William Darcy is with her party, they’re the clear cut socialists, many years were spent reorganising their policies but that has always been their main area. When she thinks about him, she’s irritated just by the thought of him turning his nose up at the good they’ve been doing lately for the homeless and those who aren’t receiving enough help.

 

“Tomorrow is the annual ball,” Anita (one of the MP’s secretaries) reminds Eliza, a bit too excitedly. She’s about fifteen years older than Eliza but she still has an innocent feel and look about her.

“Liz, could you check this out for me?” George, the MP Eliza is interning for this year beckons her. Eliza grits her teeth at the nickname, she sees Darcy chuckle she flashes her angry eyes at him.

He stares down at Eliza’s chiffon top for a second, she rolls her eyes when he isn’t looking, he asks her to run a few errands and reminds her to wear something ‘sexy’ tomorrow night. George even though he has the ability to be a perv, is a great MP.

 

“Oh god Charlotte I am freaking out.” Eliza fans herself, she’s sat at Charlotte’s feet, who’s currently intricately plaiting her hair.

“Don’t, I’ll be there and you’ll look great.”

Eliza has chosen a royal blue number whereas Charlotte has worn a black dress. Charlotte’s pixie cut stops her from having much choice of any sort of upd but it’s classily curled.

Eliza keeps fidgeting with the hem of the dress, Charlotte whacks her arm causing the dress to fall back down to the floor.

“Would you stop fidgeting?” Charlotte chided and then suddenly stiffened, Eliza looked at Charlotte weirdly and then saw that William Darcy had wandered over.

Ugh why, Eliza thought to herself.

“Well Eliza, aren’t you going to introduce us?” Charlotte said, giving Eliza a smile that said be polite.

Of course Charlotte, this is William Darcy, he’s an uptight prick who acts like he’s got a very large vegetable up his arse. Eliza thought, her thoughts were interrupted by William coughing.

“Why yes, Charlotte. This is William Darcy, he recently joined our party – after getting kicked out of his old one of course, went to Cambridge you know. But I’m sure you know who he is, his career is so prestigious.” Eliza paused, sipped at her champagne glass and looked at him from the corner of her eye and she was pretty sure she saw his cheeks go slightly pink. “This is Charlotte, part time intern for Pinewood Studios and my full time best friend.” Eliza grinned.

“Lovely to meet you,” William had said and nodded stiffly and once they’d been introduced turned and left.

“He’s even better in life,” Charlotte said smirking into her glass.

“He’s even more a prick in real life you mean,” Eliza corrected. Charlotte smacked her arm; Eliza frowned. Charlotte nodded to behind Eliza, they had walked to an area near to William and his socialites and he had most likely heard what she said, but Eliza didn’t care.

“We’ll leave the correcting to me,” Charlotte said, shaking her head.

One of the senior MP’s had ordered everyone to dance and earlier that night Charlotte had been eyed by someone, that Eliza didn’t know but was immediately untrusting of. Eliza looked around as people partnered up and found that the only person left was William Darcy. He stepped forward and offered her his hand; she hesitated and then placed her hands in his and let him lead her to the centre of the room where the dance floor was located.

“You know you don’t have to be gentlemanly and dance with me,” Eliza said as she tried to look for Charlotte. Her heels had made her slightly taller, but her eyes lined up with his lips, still having to look up to reach his eyes.

“No, it’s fine,” he said simply. He could dance well, Eliza noted. An awkward silence descended as they danced. She could feel the warmth of his hand on her waist through the material of her dress. He was determinedly staring at her, trying to decipher what she was thinking. Finally, she decided to break the silence.

“Did you hear what I said earlier?” she asked after clearing her throat, to which he nodded. She bit her lip and hummed. Before she could say anything else, the song ended and many couples parted. William dropped her hands, and tensed his own. He forced a smile, and walked out of the crowd, leaving Eliza mystified. Then she saw Charlotte’s blonde curls.

“Charlotte!” Eliza beckoned, Charlotte parted with the tall, dark blonde male.

“Did you get his number?” Charlotte shrugged coyly.

“He was American as well,” she sighed then she recollected herself. “Anyway I saw you with Mr. Darcy,” Charlotte wagged her eyebrows and Eliza rolled her eyes.

“I think he might hate me more than I hate him.” Eliza said as she saw him leave with his posse, Charlotte’s new beau included.

They left not long after Darcy had, Eliza had sat in the black cab wondering why he left her so suddenly and why he was acting like her touch disgusted him and if he thought that, why did he dance with her.

When they finally got into their flat, Charlotte ran to her room with her dress half off while Eliza headed to the kitchen and took a bite out of the last cold piece of pizza from the night before. Charlotte returned to the kitchen, taking a seat at the breakfast bar in her pyjamas and scrunched her nose in disgust.

“I don’t understand how you do it.”

“Do what?” Eliza said, her mouth full of pizza.

“Cold pizza. Just why?” Charlotte had taken to the tub of ben and jerry’s. “Anyway what about you and Darcy, when he rushed out of there, you didn’t want to speak about him no more.”

Eliza closed the fridge and sighed.

“He’s intense.” Eliza said, for some reason she had to fight a smile. Something she hadn’t needed to do before when talking about him, there was an internal battle inside, this forceful fiery feeling against a light butterfly feeling.

“Intense how?” Charlotte leant forward on her elbows, sticking the spoon into her mouth.

“Well we danced. Obviously. He’s just silent, he observes too much. The way he stares, he just…” Eliza narrowed her eyes remembering what happened. “The colour of his eyes _are_ nice.” She admitted.

Charlotte smirked knowingly and continued to eat her ice cream. Eliza finished the rest of her pizza slice, said goodnight and went to bed – completely confused.


End file.
